﻿﻿APPLE PAY – a quick guide

July 14th 2015 by Kalpesh Bhandari

A change to the way customers can make payments in store and online is introduced this week with the introduction of Apple Pay.

Apple Pay is a “breakthrough contactless payment technology with unique security features built into the devices”. It means that you can use your iPhone, Apple Watch or iPad to pay in a simple, secure and private way.

Why should I care about Apple Pay?

Whilst we’re not trying to endorse a product or brand here, we do want to outline the changes and potential benefits of using such a system as it may change how you handle your money. It’s also appropriate and timely because in May The Guardian reported that card and automated payments overtook cash transactions for the first time.

If you only spend what you need to – this can help you save money

One of the biggest ways in which you could save money is by spending only what you need to – and paying by card can help to achieve this. Paying by cash does have a tangible, or real, feeling about it but paying by card for everyday purchases takes the exact amount of money from your account. You don’t have the option to spend the change.

Secure payments, secure spending

With Apple Pay, there’s an extra layer of security in that payments are validated by the fingerprint scanner. With regular card payments that use contactless technology, no pin number is required. If your card was stolen it could still be used to make contactless purchases. However by using Apple Pay this couldn’t happen as each payment requires your fingerprint to do this. Plus if you lose the phone it can be remotely wiped through your iCloud account. It’s just as easy to cancel your cards with a phone call to your bank – but if you have many banks then you may need to make a number of calls.

Use it with the watch or phone

The introduction of Apple Pay does change the way you can make transactions. If you have the watch, provided it’s paired with your phone, you can use it to make a purchase.

All the major banks are on board so you’ll be able to use it

Most major banks in the UK have signed up to using the service – so you’ll be able to use it with a compatible device.

UK retailers are accepting Apple Pay

A number of major retailers have already signed up to accepting the service. As it uses existing NFC (Near Field Communication) it doesn’t require any additional hardware upgrades to payment terminals in store.

Whilst we’re not saying you should go out and get an Apple device to use Apple Pay, what we’re saying is that such a service may make you think differently about how you handle cash and money in your account. By spending only what you need means you won’t have the option to spend any change which wasn’t earmarked for anything in particular. If you save this cash instead your wallet may feel better in the long run.

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